The West Pole

In response to: "Language is a funny thing" 515 days old
by PozycjonowanieStron [Member]

It is true - language is a funny thing. For example English has more exceptions than ruls. ;)
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In response to: "Language is a funny thing" 541 days old
by Gosiak [Member]

Hi Robert,

You spent some time in my home town, GORZOW, amazing. And equally amazing, you are asking the questions I have been trying to find answers for for the last few years.
By the way, are youb still in Gorzow? more…

In response to: "Language is a funny thing" 961 days old
by shaz_the_prole [Member]

Ok my polish is absolutely next to non existent so excuse my spelling Djindobre. more…

In response to: "Carnival" 988 days old
by polish_english_me [Member]

Hello my love, Poland's often like that- modern on one side, traditional on the other. Torn between the East and the West.
It's very impressive how you manage to understand the country better than many Poles do. Keep on thinking about it and writing. more…

In response to: "Szkola" 1354 days old
by Mariczka [Visitor]

I just wanted to let you know that I love you so incredibly and amazingly much... xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx more…

In response to: "Szkola" 1496 days old
by La Petite [Visitor]

Rar... another Polish girl :) Shudn't have let her see the page ;p more…

In response to: "Szkola" 1498 days old
by Kaś [Visitor]

Great, but I don't understand anything... more…

In response to: "Szkola" 1499 days old
by La Petite [Visitor]

You definitely should be glad :) Wo do have some time for other things though... :)
Your Polish really is improving (don't know what about your English :)) And just btw- 'school' is 'szko³a', not 'sko³a' :)
The Polish school is quite tiresome but on the other hand we're mostly really hardworking... more…

In response to: "Solidarnosc" 1528 days old
by robertbeaman [Member]

It's certainly true of Poland at the moment with Krasniewski as president, but then Poland has tried other leaders (notably Walesa himself as president) before bringing him back to power. It seems to me that the same people would always be attracted to government, whatever their ideological stance (if any). Krasniewski seems to me to be a case in p more…

In response to: "Anton the Serb" 1530 days old
by Goran [Visitor]

I am really curious to know his real name. Maybe someone from Serbia knows something about him more…

In response to: "Solidarnosc" 1531 days old
by varske [Visitor]

There's an article in this week's Economist "History Lessons Passed and Failed, which claims that most of the "significant" events of the past in Eastern Europe (including the founding of Solidarnosc) were less significant in retrospective then they seemed at the time. It remarks that the same elites under communism are often still in charge now, more…

In response to: "'The Sheep Advert'" 1533 days old
by varske [Visitor]

Adverts never seem to cross cultures. I remember seeing a bank advert a few times in Russia. It showed a young couple with baby in a pram with their future (and a bank loan) in front of them. They were obviously intended to be the equivalent of a successful yuppy couple to the Russian viewers (assuming that concept was recognizable).

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In response to: "Autobusowy, sklepy, i reklamy" 1539 days old
by varske [Visitor]

Me back again:

http://www.livejournal.com/users/lovimoment/

is an American girl just arrived in Ekaterinberg. She has lived in St Petersburg last year and speaks Russian, so knows what she is getting into. more…

In response to: "Autobusowy, sklepy, i reklamy" 1539 days old
by varske [Visitor]

And a girl working in Kosovo who likes train travel! http://www.livejournal.com/users/marpesia_m/

My mother used to send me all sorts of newspaper cuttings she thought I needed, which were not very interesting to me. Sorry if I am doing to same to you. more…

In response to: "Autobusowy, sklepy, i reklamy" 1539 days old
by varske [Visitor]

Sorry, forgot to say well done on the bus pass. more…

In response to: "Autobusowy, sklepy, i reklamy" 1539 days old
by varske [Visitor]

This blog programme is really weird. You click on the comment line and then it seems nothing happens. After about 3 clicks it dawns on you to scroll down and there is the comment box.

Here's a blog about travelling round the world (currently in China) http://sanyu.typepad.com/sanyus_world/. It's not very erudite but what do you ex more…

In response to: "A long and winding road" 1540 days old
by robertbeaman [Member]

hi rob very interested in your blog ensure you keep it up. When you start teaching dont pitch it too high and dont assume everyone has the same interest or knowledge as yourself if you pitch it low you can work up if you pitch it high you may put people off. See yer ducks jrb & mab more…

In response to: "Gorzow" 1542 days old
by varske [Visitor]

Glad you arrived safely and everything's OK. more…

In response to: "Dulce Domum" 1544 days old
by varske [Visitor]

And it's always much nicer arriving somewhere by train. As people get on and off, you get used to the change in language and food (though maybe not so much these days). Better than going up in the air, and coming down just anywhere without any sense of continuity.

And don't forget to check that there are no hills between Cambridge an more…

In response to: "Dulce Domum" 1544 days old
by varske [Visitor]

Didn't realise you were going by train. It can't be a problem going through Berlin to Poland, any more.

I can remember when I went to Moscow by train before the Wall came down. You got on the train at Hook van Holland, handing over your passport to the Russian train conductress. Berlin was a place of train shunting in the night: one more…

In response to: "And so it begins..." 1559 days old
by varske [Visitor]

Me again. Just thought you might like to know that the tags show that someone is writing in Polish and quite a lot of posts too. Seems to be a girl in Harrow. You might like to get in touch! more…

In response to: "And so it begins..." 1559 days old
by varske [Visitor]

Hi Rob, just found the blog. I hooked it up to RSS so I can read it in Yahoo and know exactly when you've updated it.

First time I've seen an RSS feed for comments separately from posts, but I guess that one is for you (since you know when you have posted!)

Look forward to reading your adventures.

The blog te more…

In response to: "Why Poland?" 1561 days old
by SimpleCityDress [Member]

You shouldn’t really compare the two but YES I agree Poland has borrowed a lot from LITHUANIA. (haha-another anti-polish joke there for you)
Also, you should definitely go see the dunes in Nida they’re quite something, the seafood is also excellent and the nightlife is buzzing.
Just out of interest-how are you finding Polish people? < more…

In response to: "An address" 1563 days old
by robertbeaman [Member]

Thanks for writing:) I had to think about that for a long time before writing the new post ('Why Poland?'). I'm not sure I've given a good answer even now, but I'll think about it for future posts. If there's anything else you'd like to see included, just let me know. more…

In response to: "Why Poland?" 1563 days old
by robertbeaman [Member]

Whether fortunately or unfortunately, my girlfriend is very Lithuanian, having spent her most important growing-up years living in Vilnius. On the negative side, I've had to endure a few anti-Polish jokes, but on the plus side I was lucky enough to visit her in Vilnius a couple of times, and I'd agree that its as beautiful as any of the towns I've more…

In response to: "Why Poland?" 1564 days old
by 10loves10 [Member]

Poland is overrated, but I agree it's lovely in some parts. Go to Lithuania if you ever get the chance, it has a lot to offer especially Nida, Trakai, Vilnius and, of course, Kaunas.

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In response to: "An address" 1564 days old
by ferijen [Member]

Sounds like you're in for an exciting time! Would be interested to know more about how you got interested in Poland. more…